Sally Brewster Brownell

BROWNELL - In Newport, RI, on March 6, 2013, Sally Brewster (Jones) Brownell, 93, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her children. Her husband, Dr. Henry Harry Ward Brownell, MD, preceded her in death on February 22, 2005. Sally was the only child of Harry Seymour and Rebecca Walker (Brittin) Jones. She was born in Fairfield, CT November 12, 1919. Sally and her family moved to Morristown, NJ when she was 8. Her dad died in 1934 when she was 15 and attending her junior year at Morristown High School. She attended her senior year at Dean Academy (now Dean College) in Franklin, MA where she graduated. Afterwards, she attended and graduated in June 1941 from the New York School of Fine and Applied Art (formerly the Parsons School of Design) in Manhattan, NY with a degree in Advertising Art. Sally and Harry met at Goose Rocks Beach, Kennebunkport, Maine during the summer of 1939, where Sally was studying painting with noted watercolorist Elliot OHara and Harry was working a summer job after completing his junior year at Tufts Medical School. They were married in 1942 at the Church of the Transfiguration in Manhattan, NY, known as the little church around the corner. They returned to Newport for Harry to start his medical practice and to raise their family. Sally loved art and painting and was an accomplished, meticulous artist. Above all, she loved her family and made each child feel special. Her handwritten notes to family members, complete with her signature artwork, were always a special treat. Sally was a very caring, loving and gentle woman with a light hearted humor and a radiant smile. As a mother, she was always giving of herself; her strength and compassion were inspirational to her family. Sally is survived by her children: Bruce Newhall Brownell of Fitchburg, WI, Richard Stedman Brownell of Portsmouth, RI, and his wife, Doreen (Benway) Brownell, Rebecca Walker Brownell, of Lumberton, NC, and her significant other, Donald Ray Russ, William Brittin Brownell of Newport, RI, and his wife, Carla (Barton) Brownell, and Peter Hammond Brownell of Vienna, VA, and his wife, Susan (Van Lierde) Brownell. She is also survived by her daughter-in-law, Stephens wife, Kathleen (Dunn) Brownell of Lithia, FL (formerly of Newport, RI). Sally's family also includes 13 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren to whom she was affectionately known as "GB." She was the mother of the late Stephen Burr Brownell and Henry Ward Brownell, Jr. Sally was a member of: the Dean College Alumni Association; the Eunice Dennie Burr Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Fairfield CT; Hazards Beach; the Preservation Society of Newport; the Newport Historical Society and Top of the Hill Association of Newport. Funeral arrangements will be private and handled by Memorial Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, do something nice for someone you love and remember how important your moms love and support were in helping you become the person you are today! Donations may be made in her memory to the Newport Hospital Foundation, 11 Friendship Street, Newport, RI 02840 or to the Newport Fire Department Rescue Wagon Fund, 21 West Marlborough Street, Newport, RI 02840.